Chapter 508: One After Another

“A bunch of troublemakers! What else do they know besides accusing this and that? They dare to fabricate such nonsense at the slightest hint, and yet the court still pays them salaries for it!”
Seeing the straightforward and bright princess she had raised since childhood pacing back and forth in the room, her voice growing louder until it turned into an angry roar, Mother Ying felt severe headaches. Although she had sent the maids away, if Zhu Ning continued to curse like this, outsiders might hear her. So, she had no choice but to step forward and try to calm her down: “Princess, please calm down. Those people from the Censorate are just acting on rumors. Things will settle down in a few days…”
“But that depends on others being willing to suppress the rumors!”
Zhu Ning snorted angrily, then stamped her foot heavily before sitting back down on the carved red chair. Once she managed to calm her anger, she realized it was inappropriate to lose her temper in front of Mother Ying. She quickly stood up, forced her to sit on the chair to her left, and then sighed.
“Mother, it’s not that I want to get angry. Things are just getting more absurd. It started with someone reporting to the emperor, who ordered the Jinyiwei to investigate. I even comforted Father a bit, but now somehow the Censorate got wind of it! It’s one thing for them to rush in, but they’re using my relationship with Wan’er as an excuse, saying why should a princess of the royal family be friends with the daughter of an official? They claim it must be because Father and Lord Du were close in the past, so they use us to pass messages…”
At this point, she sneered through gritted teeth: “Now I understand what ‘fabricated accusations’ mean. They can invent nonsense from the slightest evidence. Those censors must rely on this to get promoted! Wan’er and I met at Monk Daoyan’s place, and we became friends because we got along well. Even that, they want to interfere in? There’s also a despicable guy who insinuated something between me and Zhang Yue… I wish I could kill that lying scoundrel!”
Mother Ying had raised Zhu Ning and had always taken care of her. She had never seen her so enraged. But hearing the last part, she too turned pale. Fabricated accusations were one thing—after all, it was a matter of state—but insinuating private affairs was a crime worthy of death. She managed to calm herself down and gently pulled on Zhu Ning’s sleeve, asking in a low voice, “Does Prince Zhou know about this?”

“Father… if Father finds out, I don’t know how angry he’ll be!”
Zhu Ning slumped back into her seat and only after a long while did she lift her head to look at Mother Ying and ask, “Mother, it’s all my fault. I should have been wiser. A princess of the royal family should behave properly like my sisters, not act recklessly like I did. If I hadn’t followed Father to Nanjing, I wouldn’t have met Wan’er through Monk Daoyan, and we wouldn’t have ended up in this mess, dragging Father and Wan’er’s father down with us… I should have followed Father back and gotten married honestly… Isn’t that just accepting one’s fate?”
Hearing Zhu Ning, who was even distracted during prayers, speak of accepting fate, Mother Ying felt her heart break. She stood up, stepped forward, and embraced her tightly. Ever since King Zhou Zhu Zhuo assigned her to raise that little child, she had treated Zhu Ning as her own daughter, having lost her own. Seeing her grow up day by day and become more sensible—always gentle and straightforward, unlike other princesses who were arrogant and willful—she had felt immense joy. But now, this rare precious daughter wanted to accept her fate?
“Princess, you have an extraordinary fate among thousands. Why say such foolish things about accepting fate? It’s just some ungrateful person talking nonsense. Besides, if they wanted to cause trouble, there would be someone else even without you! Moreover, King Zhou and Lord Du…”
Mother Ying abruptly stopped speaking, not knowing what to say next. Just as she was about to change the subject, she noticed Zhu Ning staring at her intently. After considering for a moment, she awkwardly explained, “Your acquaintance with Miss Du is both coincidental and fated. But I’ve heard that King Zhou and Lord Du did indeed meet in Kaifeng back then…”
At that moment, the door was suddenly pushed open. Mother Ying turned to see it was King Zhou Zhu Zhuo, and immediately regretted talking too much. Zhu Ning, after a brief pause, quickly stood up to pay respects.
Zhu Zhuo nodded indifferently and then sent Mother Ying away. Seeing that although there were no tears on Zhu Ning’s face, her eyes were slightly red, he felt extremely annoyed. He simply placed his hands on his daughter’s shoulders.

“Aning, this incident wasn’t caused by you at all. If anyone is to be blamed, it’s me for dragging you into it! When I first met Lao Du, he didn’t know I was a prince, and I didn’t know he had once been a Hanlin scholar. So I arranged for someone to introduce him to teach at the Zhang family’s academy. After that, I often played chess and chatted with him. When both of us learned about each other’s identities, we were afraid of affecting one another and stopped contacting each other. I really don’t know where those guys got those old grievances from! You having a chance to get to know his daughter is your fate—can’t even you, a noblewoman, make a friend?”
The Zhang family’s mansion finally regained some of its festive atmosphere from years ago. After all, with all the men sent away, Zhang Zhuo had finally returned. Although Zhang Zhuo wasn’t biologically related, his effort to come back from afar made Lady Gu happy, though she still scolded him for leaving his family in Nanjing. It wasn’t until she heard that the cold weather would slow down Sun’s family’s journey by several days that she finally calmed down. Just a few days after Zhang Zhuo’s return, good news kept coming: the emperor bestowed an imperial decree on Zhang Zhuo and gave gold and silver gifts to Du Wan and her son. It was only then that Lady Gu realized it was all because Zhang Yue had achieved military merits on the front lines. After realizing how much she had hidden before, she couldn’t help but feel sad.
If it weren’t for her declining health, why would her family go to such lengths?
Seeing her eldest daughter-in-law, Feng Shi, holding a tray, she sighed softly, “Since the beginning of the year, there have been continuous troubles. I think it’s an inauspicious year, which is why even attempts to arrange marriages for Jiu Ge’er failed. Who would have thought that by the end of the year, Yue Ge’er would almost die? Send someone to Qingshou Temple tomorrow to light a perpetual lamp for him and offer five pounds of sesame oil per month—then I’ll feel more at ease.”
Feng Shi thought for a long time but ultimately didn’t dare mention that although Zhang Yue had returned safely to Xuanfu and achieved merits, Du Wan’s family was still in turmoil. Even news of censors impeaching them came during today’s court session. So she only gave a vague response. Normally, Lady Gu would notice anything amiss, but now she was somewhat dazed. It wasn’t until her grandsons Zhang Bi and Zhang Jing came to talk to her that she regained her spirits.
While the old lady was in high spirits, Feng Shi came out from the inner room. She saw only her two daughter-in-laws, Li Yun and Zhao Fen, along with a few maids, but no sign of Du Wan. Frowning, she asked, “Where’s Yue Ge’er’s wife? And Lingxi?”

“The eldest madam forgot—yesterday, the Duchess of England sent someone over, saying that since the Crown Princess bestowed many gifts on several ladies, she asked her three younger sisters to go to the palace to express their gratitude, and Lingxi also accompanied them.”
It was Zhao Fen who replied. Since Zhang Chao had been demoted, she understood that in the future her husband could at least inherit a position as a military commander. Even if her father-in-law Zhang You couldn’t achieve any great feats, Zhang Qi might be granted a countship by imperial decree. So she wasn’t as petty as before. “In my opinion, the Duchess of England probably wants her three younger sisters to make some connections.”
Make connections? I’m afraid Lady Wang really wants to use those connections to intercede!
Feng Shi naturally understood this intention. If it were in the past, she might have felt uneasy, but after her husband’s demotion, she was only satisfied if Zhang Xin could return safely—she had no interest in such schemes. Pretending to suddenly realize something, she nodded and asked a few questions about the Dong family. Upon learning that this always competitive second younger sister now spent her days praying, she felt even more emotional.
“What about Lady Fang?”
“She? Eats when it’s time to eat, sleeps when it’s time to sleep—she’s in great health, not showing the slightest sign of having caused trouble!” Zhao Fen sneered disdainfully and muttered, “She’s really an ignorant barbarian!”
“Enough, stop gossiping about others.”
Seeing Feng Shi frown, Li Yun stepped in to defuse the situation, then smiled and said, “We happened to hear some good news when we first came in. Please, eldest madam, go inside quickly and share the good news—eldest master has arrived in Nanjing. Having been in the south for so many years, he’s not used to the cold weather, so he’ll probably rest in Nanjing for a couple of days before continuing north by boat. He’ll definitely make it by the end of the year!”
“Amitabha, that’s truly good news! I’ll go inform the old lady right away!”
Meanwhile, Zhang Zhuo, who had taken time off to care for his mother, was seeing off guests at the gate. Watching Feng Yuanming’s carriage drive away, he couldn’t help but recall what they had said earlier. Though he didn’t understand medicine, he understood that this winter was crucial, and he couldn’t calm down. Although Lady Gu was only his legal mother, not his birth mother, as a stepson who had lost his mother in this large family, he could marry and have children peacefully. His legal mother had at least not treated him poorly. He couldn’t forget her kindness just because of past setbacks. Judging from the current situation, Zhang Yue would likely have to stay in Xuanfu until the northern expedition ended. What if something happened to the old lady…
“Master!”

Coming to his senses, he then saw a rider stop in front of the door. Zhao Hu, who was on the horse, dismounted skillfully and strode forward quickly, bowing and saying, “I happened to pass by the main street just now, and a military messenger was bringing good news along the way—there was a great victory in Annam. However, I had previously heard that Li Bin, the former commander of Jiaozhi and Marquis of Fengcheng, fell ill again after arriving in Guiyang Prefecture and has now passed away!”
Hearing this news, Zhang Zhu was stunned for a moment before forcing a wry smile. With such good and bad news coming one after another, it truly messed his mind, leaving him unsure whether to be sad or happy.